Il Padrino Pizzeria & Restaurant - 11 May 2012

We were having another team night out and headed down to Pot Black in Northbridge. After a few hours there we decided to try another Mexican restaurant after a few visits to Zapata’s so we headed to La Cholita. Unfortunately, it was packed out and the wait on tables was an hour and a half. So we wandered around till one of the work colleagues and their partner mentioned they were initially heading to Il Padrino for pizza. Who doesn’t like pizza? Done! We were easily able to get a table in the sparsely populated restaurant. Il Padrino is another restaurant where the owner has taken out the best pizza maker award like Little Caesers. It was quite late, some time before 8pm, which means we missed the rush but there were people wandering in for pick up orders. The place has a nice casual feel as we took our seats on the clothed covered chairs.

Drinks were ordered and a couple of plates of garlic bread were brought out. The garlic bread was more like garlic toasts but it tasted good. There were also some olives too, but they had a sharp chilli kick to them. I’ve never eaten olives marinated in chilli. Yum! After some confusion, we decided to order 5 pizza’s to share amongst the dining party. We’re not really sure what we ordered as we put forth suggestions and the waitress, who was not particularly warm, wrote them down and then walked off once 5 were named. I believe we ordered:

The pizzas started getting brought out after a reasonable wait and were of a decent size. We also got a bowl of chilli oil which we put upon our pizzas. Chilli oil is fantastic. I didn’t get why the prosciutto pizza is called that when ham was served. Given prosciutto costs $40/kg + and we got ham, seems like false advertising to me. That pizza was average. The base of all pizza’s was thin and light with a very slight wood fired flavour but not that much. It was a shame the smokiness of the wood fired pizza was not more pronounced as it adds so much more flavour. The marinara was excellent with mussels, prawns, and shrimp forming the seafood component on a tasty pizza. I didn’t manage to get a slice of the chicken pizza unfortunately but I absolutely loved the Papa Benedictine 16th. The richness of the potato with the contrast of eggplant and an added kick of chilli provided an excellent flavour balance. This pizza was an absolute standout. I did manage to get a slice of the VIP pizza which was really good too with the softness of the feta providing that burst of saltiness combined with the juiciness of olives. I did eat a lot of pizza but I had eyed the dessert pizzas so I kept room.

We ordered the Chocolate Pizza – mascarpone, cashew nuts, marshmallow, chocolate sauce, vanilla ice cream. What was brought out was different again with chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla but who cares! The pizza is unusual given it came with marshmallows – I haven’t seen that before. It’s a pizza of indulgence. Eat it quick before the ice cream melts and enjoy the chocolatey flavours. We all liked the filling but the base was a real let down. I thought it should have been a base encased with chocolate and then the toppings so when you bite in there’s chocolate oozing out. There wasn’t enough chocolate sauce either which was disappointing but the shave cashews added a nice textual crunch.

Il Padrino Food Review Summary

Verdict: All in all, we had a good night out. The pizzas were pretty good but didn’t blow me away. Especially given the owner has won a world’s best pizza maker award. The base was lovely and light and the pizza’s weren’t over packed with too many ingredients. Instead, the ingredients were allowed to shine. I particularly enjoyed the olives marinated in chilli, chilli oil, the Papa Benedictine 16th, and the marinara pizza. The Papa Benedictine 16th was an absolute standout.Price: ResonableTaste: GreatValue: ReasonableRecommendation: Worth Visiting Again

Il Padrino Restaurant Details

Like This Food Blog & Want A Second Helping?

Feel free to subscribe via RSS or be updated via email each time a new post comes out on PerthFoodReviews.com. Alternatively, bookmark this foodie site on your favourite social media site below. Remember, when it comes to food, it’s all about the taste.

2 comments to Il Padrino Pizzeria & Restaurant – 11 May 2012

As an italian who loves food and who has been working in hospitality for a few years I would like to answer the question: “why ham is called prosciutto?”.
Prosciutto is italian for ham.
If you go in any pizzeria in Italy and order a “prosciutto e funghi” pizza they will serve a margherita with mushrooms and ham.
The expensive prosciutto you are referring to is called “prosciutto crudo” or more specifically “Prosciutto di Parma” or “San Daniele” depending on the area it is produced. Crudo means raw or crude.
It is a misundrestanding that happens very often out of Italy and the more sensitive restaurants owners are specifying it in the menu.
I hope you will find this helpful.
Buon Appetito!
Daniela

Thanks for that interesting explanation. From an Italian point of view, the menu description makes perfect sense but is misleading to all others. When a menu specifies “prosciutto”, I’m expecting the expensive stuff, whereas if it says “ham” then I’d expect something you would get at the deli. To be honest, that is a huge oversight on the part of the owners. I don’t think I’ve ever been mislead in terms of a menu description except on a couple of occasions. I’m completely ok with a pizza having ham on it, but one feels a little disappointed when you don’t get what you’re expecting.

Do you recommend any Italian restaurants – whether they just serve pizza or anything Italian?